IL Man Sentenced for Having Deadly Fish Toxin

ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) -- A 39-year-old suburban Chicago man has been sentenced to more than 7 1/2 years in prison for obtaining a deadly puffer-fish toxin to deploy as a weapon.

Edward Bachner was sentenced Monday in federal court. He pleaded guilty last year to knowingly possessing the toxin for use as a weapon, wire fraud and filing a false tax claim.

The Lake in the Hills man was arrested in 2008 after picking up a package containing the toxins. Authorities originally claimed he planned to kill his wife and collect on a $20 million insurance policy but those allegations were not part of his guilty plea.

Bachner's defense attorneys have denied any such murder plot ever existed, and his wife and family have stood by him.

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